Someone is trying to get in to our house

[piscofrisco]

....it started in summer. I came in through the door, shut it behind me and put my keys down on the side. Went to go out later and the keys were gone. The car was still there on the drive. Two days later Iwa idly scrolling through Facebook and saw them on our local towns lost and found type forum. They had been found on a bus in an area of town that I have never been to.
We had a lot of people doing work on our house last year after a huge house fire. Any number of them could have copied the key.
We changed the locks and although very freaked out, just kind of carried on as usual.
A few months later dh was away with three of our kids. I was at home with dd1. We distinctly heard someone try they handles on all three our our exterior doors. The dogs were going off it. We were terrified. We called dh who thought we were winding him up. We told the police who said there was nothing we could do bar put a camera up. We duly installed a ring doorbell.
A few months passed with no incident until this past few weeks. Dh and I both laid up with Covid. In the lounge with the blinds shut. Someone aggressively knocked on the window right behind us. When we looked there was no one there and no one showed up on the ring camera (which shows the whole front driveway).
And now today. I'm
Wfh and I could hear someone rattling the side door handle. Dogs going mad. I thought it was dh back early and not taken his key. Went to look-no one there. Dh is at work still.
Ring camera is charging up so not on to check.
I am now pretty nervy when in the house on my own. I'm going to work from Starbucks this afternoon.
We have a sort of granny flat thing in the back garden which I daren't look in.
The police basically said just keep your doors locked.
What else can we do?

years ago ihad a huge wolfdog after 15years died.nobody came in my yard even after he was gone..kept loud bark tape/ video etc whatever you can use for sound recording
go on youtube/u said you have a laptop any type of music device and when it scares you set that sound/ up as loud as you can

for a decade punks around thought he was still here this my rook was till alive and crossed the street when he (barked)

i have a staffie now she only 65 lb but sounds like a big dog
most people are afriad of dogs/my grandma had a big pig that would chase stranger

We have security lights at the front both sides and two at the rear. Also two dogs that will bark. We were burgled years ago so put in an alarm system in our old house because we were out all day.

Especially with Christmas coming don't put presents out in full view it's too tempting. If you're a family with valuable things in the garage, shed, make sure security covers those too.

Probably not just yours, burglars go up and down streets trying handles, unless they are trying a key in the lock, the lost keys are probably a coincidence

Get blinds or full curtains - I couldn’t live in a house with bifolds or similar with no curtains. You’re basically living in a goldfish bowl.

Comically unfortunate looking ❤️

Cameras, alarm and lights

You might investigate the kind of lights that sweep if someone comes onto the lawn after you set them off

They will give up once it’s clear you are too hard to get into

with all the lights on as well...you're either lighting yourself up as a target or lighting up an empty looking house.

I watched an interview with an ex burglar once and he said the easiest targets are houses you can see into, especially if they can see a calendar and have an idea of when you're out or away.

They might do it on a deposit, or can you get an affordable cheap loan.

I wouldn’t normally advocate that, but in this case I think you need to sort it

'comically unfortunate looking mongrels'

The very best little beasts to have.

I really hope not...😱

This is a very interesting thread, and it is clear that with the OP's DH away a lot on business, that she feels vulnerable. I answered earlier about getting lights, but other comments have reminded me that my elderly parents were broken into once (while they were sleeping upstairs). In their case the housebreakers were not after anything (just as well, as apart from a very old TV, I don't think my parents had anything of value whatsover). Instead, they (or possibly just one person), left a deposit (faeces) on the front room floor, and ate items out of the fridge, before leaving.
It completely unnerved mt DP though.

I have a giant fluffy couch potato who is an utterly useless guard dog. Everyone coming to the door MUST be visiting to play with her! She barks at the door but that is to alert us to open it faster. Anyone who can read a dog’s body language would know she was inviting them in to scratch her ears. This is her (slightly damp after a bath) Trying to get me to convince my 19y/o (face covered) to share her sausage roll.

Good lord - what type of dog is that? Are you sure she is a dog and not a bear?!

would certainly make a burglar think twice!

Get blinds for your kitchen asap
Have any neighbours had anything similar?

That dog looks great

please get the locks changed asap, tell your insurance company and get cctv.

Glad to hear DH is talking to a security guy. CCTV cameras with a screen you can check when you hear noises is very comforting.

Would there be any chance your opposite neighbours would house a camera trained on your house for a short period? If it’s subtle enough the person may not notice they’re being recorded

@AngryBird6122 - she’s a Shiloh Shepherd. Really not the most flattering photo of her. She is very scruffy there. They are often used as an assistance dog, but she is a breed fail and we are her assistance people. She’s afraid of Schniztel and Strudel the sausage dogs in the park, birds and cats. She has recently become afraid of storms and rain, wind and getting her little Princess toes wet in the grass. She is a total snuggle bunny and talks a lot. Below is a much more flattering photo of her.

OP we had a similar incident recently, we had in variety of tradesmen, who I suspect were criminals although they came with references from a lawyer friend of DH's we fell out with them. A set of keys went missing and then one Saturday afternoon someone came in, my Dd, then 10, was in the kitchen came up and there was a youngish guy in a hoodie rifling through the drawers in the hall, at the same time DS aged 12, came out the drawing room, he raised the alarm and called my DH. The guy fled but not before taking some old wallets with some euros and library cards in them.

The police came very quickly, they thought the dodgy tradesmen, had sold our keys to another criminal gang who had then broken in. I still feel quite edgy and lock both doors at the front and we have bolts across the top and bottom of the doors which we slide locked when everyone is home. We also have a ring doorbell but I'm sceptical it's actually any use.

You have my full sympathy, my kids are quite anxious now which os unfortunate too.

We have changed all locks and got extra lighting etc.

I think it’s someone who knows one of you. They know they can’t get in yet keep coming back. They aren’t waiting until you are out or trying to be discrete. If they just wanted to get in I don’t think they would knock on the window and I think they would try when you were out. Seems like they are trying to scare you.

Why would someone enter to take your keys if they already had copied your keys.

other things just sound like random paranoia - if you thought someone was there why didn’t you look out of a window?

Exactly my thoughts too

Why would someone enter with a house key and take the car key? To take the car I would guess and then maybe got disturbed? That's what we guessed at the time but maybe not 🤷🏽‍♀️
Security neighbour is not the same as fire neighbour
Anyway no more incidents this eve. In bed with dh and dss 2 and all locked up so should be fine. Let's hope so!